Upholstery spring inserting machine



March 1935- c. LOFMAN EIAL UPHOLSTERY SPRING INSERTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet l 5 CHARLES LOFMAN KARL March 12, 1935. c. LOFMAN El AL UPHOLSTERY SPRING INSERTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ER Y 5% I I (Adz THEIR A bRNEY INVENTORS CHARLES LOFMAN KARL K755,

c. LOFMAN ET AL 'UPHOLSTERY SPRING INSERTING MACHINE March 12, 1935.

Filed Jan. 30, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 KARL??? BY M T I ATTORNEY f H 5 7E i a I a l Z4 5| Z] 2| 50 60 {R 99 129 @512 90 x O 2' 9| T ,1 e8 2 52 6| I J jja 55 r 98 O 97 l 1,76 (l s; T

I K 2 7 II "I I V i A l M, 1 95 2| i5 104 8a 28 H8 57 H7 94 79 o INVENTORS 56 CHARLES LOFMAN March 12, 1935. c. LOFMAN ET AL 1,994,043

UPHOLSTERY SPRING INSERTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 4 V5; gi I y 120 W 28 l p A 91 I TI? \WMQQ VII/(111111 Z'. q I A 56 INVENTORS CHARLES LOFMAN HIE 1R ATTORNEY March 12, 1935. c, LOFMAN ET AL 1,994,043

UPHOLSTERY SPRING INSERTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 50, 1952 5'sheets sheet 5 |89 :m mnmp;

' INVENTORS CHARLES LOFMAN c KARL KAISER I84 i r Patented Mar. 12, 1935 I 1 UNITED sTArEs 1,994,043 UPHOLSTERY SPRING INSERTING MACHINE Charles Lofman, Riverside, 111.; and Karl Kaiser, Michigan City, Ind, assignors to S. Karpen & Bros, Chicago, 111., a. corporation of Illinois Application January 30, 1932, Serial No'.'589 ,81 6' s Claims. '(Cl. 226 -1 Our present invention relates to upholstery machinesand more particularly to an improved upholstery spring inserting machine.

' Modern upholstery is no longer built by tak- 5 ing a plurality of individual springs and individually positioning the same in place in the situation in. which they are to be used and interconnecting suchsprings to form arelatively' compact mass which is then enclosed in'a suitable covering to produce the finished piece of upholstery. In the more modern practice of upholstering, a fabric member'of indeterminate length has formed therein along its length trans-. versely located pockets and in each of such pocketsis situated a spring, the pockets being afterwards closed usually by sewing. It is de sired toproduce an upholstered article, the spring containing portion thereof is builtup by fitting a length of the fabric above referred to into position and then covering the bank of springs with the usual covering. s The formation of the strips of fabric with the springs inserted in the pockets thereof was first produced manuallyand later machines were developed for speeding up production. V 1

Our present invention relates to machinesof the character wherein the strip of fabric is preferablyformed of aplurality of plies of fa bric stitched along one edge and transversely at a number of points to provide transversely arranged pockets in the strip and such strip is fed manually to a machine which automatically makes and inserts springs in the pockets after which the strip of fabric with the springs in the pockets thereof are fed to sewing means for sealing the open ends of the pockets.

'A feature of ourpresent invention is the provision of improved spring receiving means and improved means for inserting the springindividually in succession withinthe pockets of a fabric pre-sewed with pocket partitions or between superimposed layers of fabric or equivalent.

A further feature of our invention is an improved'cooperative association of spring receiving means and means for compressing individual springs successively releasedfrom the spring receiving means, coupled with suitable means for inserting; the compressed individual springs successively within the pocketed fabric or superimposed fabric layers.

Further features and objects of the invention will appear as the description of the invention progresses. 1

Fig. 1 is a front elevation, illustrating at the right the conventional spring forming machine stretching mechanisms;

of Fig. 1

associated with spring receiving and spring fabric inserting mechanism'and at theleft thefabric-spring compressing mechanism associated with the pocket mouth showing mechanism;

Fig. 2-, is a top plan view, partly broken away in horizontal section, of the right-hand end portion of Fig. 1, illustrating in particular the spring compressing-spring lnserting and'fabric Fig. 3 is-an, end elevation of Fig. 2. The parts of-the mechanisms illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 show, a spring at thestage of compression within the spring inserting plunger; 1

Fig. 4 is an end elevationsimilar to Fig. 3,, the parts being illustrated at a stage in advance of spring compression; Fig. 5 is a similar end; elevation,- being illustrated at a stage ofthe spring in compressed status and in transit of insertion through theguide channel;

Fig.- 6' is a vertical central elevation through the delivery end of the spring delivery guide tube, the indicated parts being shown on an enlarged scale. The parts are shown at the stage of compression of a. spring;

Fig. 7 is an end elevation similar to Fig. 5, the parts being illustrated at the stage of insertion of the indicated compressed spring within the folds of the fabric, the fabric being subjected to the fabric stretching and holding mechanism;

Fig 8 is a detail side elevation corresponding to like parts in Fig. 7, but on-an enlarged scale, combined spring retaining and fabric stretchingmechanism being illustrated at a stage subsequent to spring insertion;

Fig. 9 is a top plan view of 7 the fabric-spring compressing mechanism illustrated at the left ,Fig. 1G is a side elevation of the delivery end of the fabric-spring compressing mechanism,

on an enlarged scale, the View being opposite to that illustrated in Fig. 1; and V Fig-11 is a sectional elevationtaken on line QOur invention comprises in the more-preferred forms the assembly of spring insertingmechanism, associated in anysuitable relation-- ship with spring supply means, such as present day so-calledspring-coiling machines, whereby the springs are individually successively placed between upper and lower folds of fabric, pref-- erably presewed with pockets, in combination with suitable means for compressing the springs Within'the respective fabric pockets in the posithe pa tion of each spring as inserted by the spring inserting mechanism, in combination with means for positioning the edges of the fabric adjacent to the open mouth of the pockets, and in combination with a sewing machine head or equivalent for wholly or substantially closing the pocket mouths, the feeding of the fabric relative to the spring inserting mechanism being performed manually by an operator, the mouthclosing mechanism being controlled by the operator in correspondence to the rate of operation of spring insertion.

In such more preferred forms of our invention, the drive of the spring inserting mechanism is independent of the drive of the mouth-closing mechanism, although a common source of power may be employed, in which latter event the connection and disconnection of the mouth-closing mechanism relative to the common source is controlled by the operator.

It is advantageous, though not essential, that a spring making machine, such as a present day-so-called spring coiling machine, may be directly associated with our spring inserting mechanism and conveniently driven by the same source of power, whereby springs are intermittently delivered in succession through suitable channel or other means to the spring inserting mechanism.

As indicated above, the mechanisms illustrated in the accompanying drawings are of the above stated preferred types, and accordingly, the detail description of the illustrated mechanisms serve solely as examples of preferred forms of our invention.

Referring to the drawings, and particularly to Fig. 1, 20 indicates any regulation spring coiling machine adapted in general to form intermittently, from wire, usually in reel form, a succession of individual springs of adjustable predetermined efiective diameter and length and configuration. A freshly formed spring is ill-1 dicated at 21 in process of formation.

The chute 22 serves to deliver the intermittently formed springs 21 to our spring inserting mechanism designated generally 23.

Our spring inserting mechanism comprises in essentials suitable means in association with the chute 22 or equivalent for receiving a spring 21 in expanded status, suitable m ans for compressing the spring, a guide channel for receiving a spring 21 in compressed status, said guide channel including a pivoted mouth jaw or other portion, the upper mouth jaw or portion being preferably stationary to receive the fabric as manually fed by the operator, and suitable means for displacing the compressed spring through the guide channel to thereby deliver the spring in compressed status therethrough, including the pivotal movement of the lower channel jaw, which latter movement effects positive opening of the pocket mouth, and further associated with elements operated in timed relation for positively retaining a layer or other portion of the fabric in stationary relation with respect to the guide channel during the stage of spring insertion.

In the more preferred forms of our invention, the fabric retaining elements serve also to control the degree of compression of the inserted spring within the fabric mouth, after spring insertion.

Repeated operation of the above stated essential functions of our spring inserting mechanism takes place successively for the intermittently supplied springs, accompanied by manual feeding of the pocketed fabric at intervals corresponding to the spring inserting cycle of operations.

Our spring inserting mechanism in the preferred form as illustrated, comprises, (see Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5) the supporting plate 24 disposed in suitable adjacency to the outlet 22a of the chute 22 whereby a spring 21 is delivered with its lowermost convolution 21a resting upon the upper face of the plate 24.

The received spring 21 is now subjected to compression, as by means of the compressing lever 25 suitably pivoted, as by means of the stud shaft 26 mounted in the bearing 27 suitably secured to the bed 28, the chute 22 being provided with diametrically arranged and related slots 29, 30, (see Figs. 2 and 4) to permit compressing movement of the lever 25 upon the spring 21 resting upon the plate 24, the effective end portion 25a ofthe compressing lever 25 engaging the uppermost convolution 21b of the spring 21.

Preferably, as is illustrated in Fig. 6, said end portion 25a is of hollow arcuate formation, and the plate 24 is preferably integral or otherwise rigid with the bed 28, the upper face 24a of the plate 24 being horizontally counter-sunk below the upper face of the bed 28, and also vertically counter-sunk at the opposite sides 24b to form horizontally extending guide-ways for opposite lateral edges 31a of the plunger 31, (see Fig. 2). Also as will appear from an inspection of Fig. 6, the plunger 31 is provided with an upper extension 31b, serving as a rib, the hollow arcuate end portion 25a of the compresser lever 25 enabling the rib 31b to pass therethrough, in the spring feeding movement of the plunger 31, as appears more fully hereinafter.

Certain parts of our coil compressing and coil inserting mechanism are embodied in the corresponding parts of the coil spring inserting machine, as set forth and claimed in the copending application of one of us, Charles Lofman, Serial No. 523,499, filed March 18th, 1931.

Certain other parts of our coil compressing and coil inserting machine peculiar to the present construction are set out in detail in this specification and are specifically set forth in certain of the claims.-

Secured to the upper face of, the base 28, adjacent to the delivery end of the chute 29 and on one side thereof, is a standard 40 which has secured to or formed integral therewith at its upper end a forwardly extending member 41. Secured to the lower face of the base 28 and in vertical alignment with the standard 40 is a similar standard 42 which extends downwardly to any convenient point and has secured to or formed integral therewith at its lower end a forwardly extending member 43. Secured to the forwardly extending members 41 and 43 and passing through a perforation in the base 28 is a vertically arranged shaft 44 which lies parallel to the upwardly and downwardly extending standards 40 and 42, respectively. Slidably mounted on the upper end of the shaft 44 is a bearing member 45 which has formed integral therewith a'rearwardly extending member 46 which engages in a vertical groove 47 formed in the front surface of the standard 49. Slidably mounted on the lower end of the shaft 49 is a bearing 47 which has formed integral therewith a rearwardly extending member 48, which is an: arm provided at its forward: end-with a bearing-51, in which is adjustably mounted a shaft-52, such shaft 52 being provided on its lowerend with an upper presser foot 53 170 196" hereinafter described more in detail.

' Formed integral with the bearing 47 and ex-' tending forwardly therefrom is an arm 5i providedat i'tsforward end with a bearing 55 and I irr-such. bearing is adjustably mounted a shaft 56 carrying at itsupper end a lowerpresse'rfoot 5'7 to be hereinafter more fully described.

Pivotally mounted on the'bearing'l'at the shaft 58 is one end of a link 59. Pivotally at ta'clied to the bearing-45 at the shaft 60 is one endof a link 61. bolt's 62 is a bearing bracket 63. Secured. to" the'end face of the base 28 directly beneath the- -bearing bracket 63 is a bearing bracket 64. This bearing bracket 64 has formed integral therewith a laterally extending member 65-; the outer endof which is' formed integrally with an upwardly extending member 66- which'z'nember has formed thereon at its upper. end a beari'ngmember- 67-, which bearing member is in alignment with the bearing member of the bearing-bracket 63. Secured in the bearing brackets 63'; 67,'is a shaft 68. Formed in theupwardly extending member 66; is a bearing member 69 which' i's in alignment with a bearing '70 formed in thebearing bracket 64 and in the bearings 69- and '70 issecured ashaft 71 which lies beneath and extends parallel to the shaft 68. R0 tatably mounted on the shaft 68 is a bearing member 72', which has formed integral therewithand extending 'radially upward therefrom, an arm 73, the outer end of which is pivotally attached to the lower free end of the link; 61. Rotatably mounted'on the shaft '71 is a bearing- 74 which has formed integral therewith and" extending radially outward therefrom an arm 75which is pivotally attached to the upper free end of the link 59. Formed integral with the bearing '72 and extending radially with respect thereto is an arm 76 carrying at its lower end. a segmental gear" 77 which meshes with a segmental gear '78 carried by an arm 79 formed integral with and extending radially outward from the bearing- 74 that is mounted on the shaft 71. The segmental gear '77 and 78 meshing with each other insure that the bracket, arms 50 and i fie will move in unison toward and from'each other, and thereforethere is a positive simultaneous movement of the upper and lower presser' feet 5-3 and 54 respectively toward and from each other. Secured to the arm'73, intermediate itsends is one end of a coil spring 79, the other e'ndof; this coil spring being attached to the arm 75 at apoint intermediate its ends and which spring 79- tends to bring the upper and lower presser'feet 53 and,57, respectively, toward each 1. other. j

Secured to the upper faced the base 28 by.

boltsw80 is a bearing block 81 and in this bearing block is rotatably mounted the shaft 82. Secured to the shaft 82 is a sprocket wheel 83' which is in alignment with a sprocket wheel 84 carried by shaft 85 which is rotatably mount-. ed in suitable bearings at the'top' of thespring making mechanism20. A chain 86 passing over the sprockets 83 and 84 causes power to be delivered from the shaft 85 to the shaft 82};

Secured to the base-28 by.

to one end of a connecting rod 99-.

end of the connecting rod 99 'is pivotally at Secured to one=-end of' the shaft 85.is a gear 8.7v which meshes. withand is. driven by agea-r 88:. secured to the drive shaft 89. of the spring; making. device .20; Secured to the shaft 82is: a cam 90..which-is engaged by a cam roller 91, rotatably mounted at the outer end of an arm 92;. which is secured: to or formed integral with the-bearing 74 which in turn is rotatably mounted on the shaft 71. It is. obvious therefore that a rotary movement of the shaft 82 will cause through the cam 90. an arm. 92 through the linkage above described a movement toward. and from each other at stated periods the upper and lower presserfeet 53 and 5? respectively.

upperface normally extending upwardly with respecttothe shaft 94 is a member 95, this member'extending forwardly, or to the left as viewed in the drawings, and its forward end extends into the lineof movement of the lower presser foot 57." Referring :to Fig. 8, for example, it

will be notedthat the inner, upper end of the lower'presser foot 57 is cutaway and the cut away portion provided with serrations 96- and which serrations together with the lower for-' ward end of the'member serve as a clamping meanslfor one edge --of'the lower ply cf-fabric constituting the pocketed fabric 97' and. in which it is desired to insert'the springs 21. The mem ber 95 and the serrations/96 are shown in Fig. 5 in clamping position. Secured to one end of the shaft 94 is the lower end of a link 98, the upper end of this link'being pivotally attached The other tachedto one end of an arm 100,- which arm isformed integral with a bearing member 101 which is rotatably mounted on the shaft 68. Also formed integral with the bearingmember 10-1, and extending radially outward therefrom, is an arm 102, carry-ingat its'outer end a'ca-m roller 103 which engages with a earn 104 carried on the-shaft 82. Secured to the arm 102 in termediate its ends is one end of a coil spring 105, the other end of this coil spring being attached to an angle bracket member 106, which bracket member is secured to one side of a supporting standard- 1'07 in any suitable manner and which acts as a partial support for the base" plate 28. Such base plate 28 is furthersupported of the plate 24 is a resilient member which extends forwardly into 'alignment with the path ofrhovem'ent of the'upper presser foot 53' and;

is associated with the member 95. Referring to Fig.8, it will be noted that the portion of the upper, presser foot .53fthat engages with the forthe shaft 82 causeaby means of the cam 104 and lever 102-; alimited" rotary movement of the member 95 relative to the spring member 110, or from the position shown in Fig. 4 to the position shown in Fig. 5, thereby opening the mouth of one of the pockets in the fabric 9'7 to allow a spring 21 to be inserted in such pocket as will hereinafter be more fully described.

Associated with the members 95 and 110 and with the upper and lower presser feet 53 and 5'7 is a work table 112. This work table is of relatively resilient material and is supported adjacent to one end on a bracket 113 secured to the end face of the plate24 by bolts 114 or in any other convenient manner. Such bracket 113 extends forwardly or to the left as viewed in Fig. '7 and extends under and supports one end of the table or work support 114. The other end of the table or work table 114 is'supported by a bracket 115 from the standard 107 as clearly shown in Fig. 2. The work table or support is provided with a rectangular opening 116 through which extends the lower presser foot 5'7 and beneath the rectangular opening and secured to 'the under face of the work support 114 is a stifiening member 117 perforated to receive as a sliding fit a shaft or rod 118 se-' cured to the under side of the lower presser foot 5'7 and which acts as a guide for maintaining the relative position of the lower presser foot with respect to the rectangular opening 116. The downward movement of the lower presser foot 57 with respect to the bearing 55 islimited by means of the collar 119 secured to the shaft 56 on which the lower presser foot 5'7 is.

mounted.

The plunger 31 slidably mounted in the base 28 has pivotally attached to its rearward end on shaft 129 the front end. of a connecting rod 121, the other end of this connecting rod being pivotally attached to one end of a link 122 secured to one face of a cam 123 attached to the shaft 82. Rotation of the shaft 82 therefore will cause a reciprocating motion of the plunger 31 in the guideways formed in the base 28, such movement taking place toward and from the upper and lower presser feet 53 and 5'7 respectively from a point to the right or rearward of the chute 22 as shown in Fig. 4 to the point indicated in Fig. '7 to thereby cause a movement of a spring 21 from the chute 22 into position in a pocket formed in the pocketed fabric 97, as such fabric is positioned between the upper and lower presser feet 53 and 5'7 respectively. Associated with the cam 123 is a cam roller 128 rotatably mounted on the free end of an arm 129, the other end of such arm being attached to the shaft 26. Surrounding the shaft 26 between the bearing 27 and the attaching point of the arm 129 is a coil spring 130, one end of which engages the lever 25 and the other end of which engages with the bearing member 27..

Such spring tends to rotate the shaft 26 in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. '7 and there-' fore tends to move the member 2512. upwardly feet 53 and 57 respectively to be moved from the position shown in Fig. 4 to the position shown in Fig. 5 prior to the time that the plunger 31 will move the spring 21 from the position shown in Fig. 4 to the position shown in Fig. '7, it being understood, of course, that prior to such movement, the spring 21 is compressed and therefore it is essential that the compressing mechanism 25a operated by means of the cam 123 will be moved from the position shown in Fig. 4 to the position shown in Fig. 5 and that the compressing means 25a will have reached the position shown in Fig.5 prior to the time the plunger 31 starts its forward movement, or movement to the left as shown in Figs. 4, 5 and '7.

Assuming, therefore, the device to have been constructed and assembled as above described and assuming that the power has been turned into the main shaft 89 from any suitable source of power and that the succession of springs 21 are being gradually formed, such springs will move from the position shown in Fig. 1 through the sheet 22 and the first spring for example, will assume the position shown in Fig. 4. As such spring reaches the position shown in Fig. 4,and it being assumed that the shaft 82 is rotating in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. 4, the cam 123 engaging with the cam roller 123 rotates the'shaft 126 to bring the compressing means 25a from the position shown in Fig. 4 into the position shown in Fig. 5 in such movement compressing the spring, as shown in Fig. 5. It is assumed that the operator will, at this time, or just prior thereto, move the strip of fabric 9'7 laterally so as to insert the free ends of the resilient member 110 and the pivoted member 95 into the open mouth of one of the pockets formed in such fabric, the position of such fabric at this time being clearly shown in Fig. 4. Simultaneously with the movement of the compressing means 25a, and due to the rotation of the shaft 82, the cam 104 engaging with the cam roller 103 will rotate the shaft 94, rotating the member 95 from the position shown in Fig. 4 into the position shown in Fig. 5. Also, simultaneously with such movement and again due to the rotation of the shaft 82, the cam 90 engaging with the cam roller91, through the linkage above described will cause the downward and upward movement respectively of the arms 50 and 54, thereby bringing the upper and lower presser feet 53 and 5'7 from the position shown in Fig. 4 to the position shown in Fig. 5 where it will be apparent that the free edges of the strip of fabric 9'7 defining the open mouth of one of the pockets therein will be clamped between the upper free edge of the resilient free member 110 and the serrations 111 of the presser foot 53 and between the lower surface of the pivot member 95 and the serrations 96 of the lower presser foot 57, thereby preventing lateral movement of the fabric strips 9'7 with respect to the length thereof during the operation of inserting a spring 21 in the pocket. At this time, in the sequence of operations of the various devices, the plunger 31 is moved forward, or to the left as viewed in Fig. 5, engaging the side of the spring 21 and forcing the same from the position shown in Fig. 4 through the position shownin Fig. 5 and into position shown in Fig. 7, where it will be obvious that such spring 21 now rests in fully inserted position within the pocket formed in the strip of fabric 97. The plunger 31 now starts its movement to the right, as shown in Fig. '7, and such movement will'continueuntil the plunger 31' isbr ought back to. its initial position asshown in Fig. 4. During this retrogrademovementof the plunger 31, the spring compressing means 25a. moves into theposition shown in Fig. 4, to

therebyallow the next succeeding springv 21 ;to-

fall intoposition at the bottom of the chute 22. Also, the pivotfmember '95. is rotated and the upperand lower presser feet. 5 3;and 57, respe clQ-, .tively are returned to the position shown in Fig. v

4. Theoperator now'moves the. strip'of fabric laterally, or to the left as shown in Fig. 4, moves the strip onwardly in the direction of its length and inserts the resilientmember 110 and pivot member 95 into the 7 nextsucceeding pocket therein where the above operation maybe re-.

peated and they maybe repeated indefinitely on 7 the strip of material. 97.

Associated with V the mechanism ap ease- ,;scribjed and located at, oneside of the standard rotatably mounted in suitable 1 bearing Ibrackets' 13'7. Secured 'tothe. shaft 136is abevelled'pinj .ion 138. which meshes with a beve'lledpinion 13 9 secured'to one'e'ndof jthe-high speed shaftf140 of a reduction gear 141, the slow. speed shaft 142 of which lies at right angles to .the" shaft 140. Secured to the' shaft 140 between the reduction gear 141 and thebevelled pinion. 13,9; isa pulley 143 that is in alignment with apulley 144 secured tov a shaft 145 journalled in suitable bearings (not shown)v 1on1 the ,.bench frame. work" 130.,

Over the pulleys ".143 and .144 runs albeit/146 4Q .andby, meansjof which power is' transmitted" fromthe shaft f14Q to, the shaft 145. Mechanism driven by the lowsp'eed shaft 140 iof'thef id c i nis ar 4 andlbv .th 'sha l z' ll' e' as i QtJ sc iDBd n.de a l: I

, 4 M i tled n eto i l h i nc enc pace apar t na i i inen fw tnr ea hp her are bearing brackets14'7 'andin such brackets is rotatably mounted shafts 148 and 149, such hatts b ns a r n ed ar l l 1 49 i iheri cl'earlyshown in -Figs, f1 land; 10;; Mounted at secured to oneen'd of the low speed shaft-.142 of' the reduction gear 141an'd over these aligned "meansr which power is transmitted from the shaft14'2-to the 'shaft149; Secured to the shaft 149'isa gear li5'2"wh ich"meshes with'andidriv'es' a' s'imilar gear' 153' 'secured to the end-of the shaft 148 thereby insuring that the shafts 148' 9}are drivenin opposite directions [and ade 14 hesame'r te r speed. r

"mane space' defined by'theshafts 143 .1749) any suitable length 'and comprising pairs of side "plates 15 and" 155, each pair of side plates beingi secured at one end by'a'shaft15 6 and at th r ether end by 70 one; 1165158 and at the; other end byfthe shaft The pairs; of side plates 154 and" 155 are sp ed apart} fromj each other. any, suitable and 155,,

sprockets runs a] sprocket" chain 152 and by;

M cross-bars 157, while "the pairlof side plates 1 55fare secured itogether. at,

extendingfromsuch standard is a member 162 whichsupports the lower pair of side plates 155 and a member 16 3 whichsupports the upper pair of side plates 154. Along the lower edge of the upper pair of side plates 154 and along,

the-upper edge of the lower pair of side plates;

155 are arranged a plurality of parallelly arrangedgrollers 164 and ,by referring to Fig. 1,-it

will be noted-that such rollers and side plates define; a tapered .throat at the end, of the pairs ofnsicle plates adjacent to thestandard 1107.

155 is a ,sheet metal guiding member 165 :andwhich acts as a guide for guiding, the strip of fabric 9'7 and the springs contained in the pock-. ets formedrtherein from, the work table 112 to and into the tapered throat defined byv the roll- Also, attached to the. lower pair of side plates ers164 at the end ofthe pairs of side plates 154 c On the shafts 156 is rotatably mounted a roll 166. On the shaft 148 on either side ofthe roller 167, are radially extending arms 169, such arms being joined at their free end by a shaft on which is rotatably.

mounted an idler roller 171. Over the rollers 166 and 167 an endless feed belt 172 and the idler roller 1'70 engages with the outer face of the feed belt 172 to keep the, same in stretched or taut condition. Also, as will benoted, inner surface of the lower reachof the endless belt 172 engages with the rollers, 166. Rotatably mounted on the shaft 158 is a roller 173 and se-.-

curedt the shaft 149 is a roller 174 and over suchrollers runs an endless .feedbelt 175, it

,beingnotedfrom an inspection of Fig. 110' that the, upper reach, of such endless feedbelt 175 rests on thejrollers 164. Also mounted on the shaft149and'on each side of the roller 1'74 are laterally extending arms 176, such arms being connectedat their outer free ends by a shaft 177 0111 which; is rotatably mounted "an idler roller 178. andwhich tends to keep the endless feed belt 175; in tense or taut condition. It is" obvious from the above. descriptionthat if the shafts 149 and 148 are. rotated simultaneously 'in opposite directiohand at thesame speed withastripof fabric 9'7 having a plurality of springs 21 arranged, in, pockets arranged along,

the length of such strip bedinto the tapered throat. as indicated! in Fig. Itheisprings are gradually compressed until the strip is engaged by the endless feed belts 1'72. and l'l5' and'that such strip of fabric' 97- will befed through the device orto the leit-as-shown in'Fig. 1 and that the springs 21 are; maintained in compressed:

conditionJas long as such strips 97' are within theginfiuence of the endless feed belt."

Up to the; present timejno particular. attenedgesof the "pliesof fabricrconstituting the strip of fabric 97in proper position relative to each" other. In other words, no attention has been paid totheedges of the fabric defining, the edges tion has .been directed to bringing the unsewn andthe brackets 147 extends a frame work of the mouths of the pockets formed m such fabric, but as such edges must be brought, into 3 proper registry with each-other prior to a sew-- ing. operation to he -performed thereon'to permafnently, close the mouth of the pockets, we.

have devised thefollowing means.

Secured to the. upperv face of the bench .131

and on'one sideof the pairs of side plates 154 and 155, above described, is a pedestal 179, to

.top of the shaft 1801s a member 181 havin on;

i fifi; 3. 9. 7 9? wl ty 9 ar l e r'als ranged bearings 182. Rotatably mounted in the bearings 182 are shafts 183, such shafts being arranged in pairs as clearly shown in Fig. 11 and secured to the ends of some of such shafts 183 are gears 184, such gears being equal in pitch and diameter and the gears of each pair meshing with each other so that the shafts 183 of each pair are rotated in the same speed and in opposite directions. On one of the shafts 183 is secured a pinion 185 which meshes with one of the gears 184 of each pair of gears, thus in-. suring that the gears of the pairs of gears in engagement with the pinion 185 will rotate in the same direction and at the same speed while the other gears of each of the pairs will also rotate in the same direction as each other, but in the opposite direction from the pairs of gears first referred to. Secured to one of the shafts 183 is a pulley 186 which is in alignment with asimilar pulley 187 secured to the shaft and over the pulleys 186 and 187 runs an endless belt 188 and by means of whichpower is transmitted from the shaft 145 to the mechanism above described as being mounted on the shaft or standard 180. Eccentrically mounted on the face of each of the gears 184 is a crank pin 189, the crank pins of the gears of each pair of gears being jointed by a connecting rod 190 while the other crank pins on the other pair of gears are connected by a connecting rod 191. Adjustably secured to each of the connecting rods 190 and 191 are resilient members 192, each of-these members being provided with an inwardly arranged member 193 which is adapted to engage with the strip of fabric 97, as clearly shown in Fig. 11 and the construction above described is such that as the shafts 183 are rotated the members 193 engaging with the strip of fabric at a point within the edge thereof tends to drag out or pull out the upper and lower plies of such fabric strip to thereby bring the upper and lower edges of such fabric defining the open ends of the pockets in such strip of fabric into alignment with each other as clearly shown in Fig. 9.

After the free edges of the strip of fabric 97 defining the. open edges of the pockets formed therein have been aligned with each other as above described, the fabric passes along the pairs of side plates 154 and and before being released from the influence of the feed belts 172 and 175, such edges are sewn together. For this purpose, I have arranged on theupper surface of the bench 131, a pedestal 194 on which is mounted a sewing machine, shown in somewhat diagrammatic form, such sewing machine having as an attachment thereto or as an integral part thereof, a shaft 195 provided on its outer end with a sprocket wheel 196 that is in alignment with a sprocket wheel 197, secured to the shaft 136 and over such aligned sprocket wheels 196 and 197 runs a sprocket chain-198 and by means of which power is delivered by the shaft 136 to the'sewing machine shaft 195. Associated with the sewing machine, indicated by the reference numeral 199, is the usual reciprocating needle bar 200 and a. presser foot (not shown) thread or other fastening means being fed to the needles carried by the needle bar 200 from' bobbins 201 after first passing through suitable tensioning devices 202.

The mechanism described with respect to Figs. 1 to 8, inclusive, have the various parts so proportioned and'so driven that each part performs its proper function in the proper way and at a definite rate of speed and in the operation of the machine, it is essential that the operator feed the pockets formed in the strip of fabric 97 to the spring inserting mechanism so as to synchronize with movement of the various devices constituting the machine. The mechanism described with respect to Figs. 1, 9, 10 and 11, however, need not be physically connected to the mechanism above referred to, but it is desirable that the alignment operation and sewing operation to complete the article being worked upon be carried out at practically the same speed as that in which the springs are inserted into the pockets of the strip of fabric 97. The sewing machine and the edge aligning devices further are operated together and at a fixed rate of speed and the driving parts are operated to feed the strip of fabric at a speed commensurate with the speed of the sewing machine and edge aligning means. After the sewing operation has been performed, the strip of fabric 97 passes it from the influence of the endless feeding belts 172 and and the strip of fabric then passes to a mechanism for correctly positioning the springs 21 within the pockets formed in the strip of fabric 97. Such spring turning device, however, forms no part of our present invention, but is described and claimed in detail in the copending application of one of us Karl Kaiser, Serial No. 589,815, filed January 30, 1932.

While we have'necessarily described the preferred embodiment of our invention somewhat in detail, it is to be understood that the parts comprising the device may be varied within relatively wide limits without departing from the spirit of the invention.

'We claim:--

1. In a machine of the character described, the combination of spring inserting means, a support for a pocketed fabricwithin a pocket of which a spring is to be inserted by said coil inserting means, means for effecting the clamping of the fabric in open position on said support in the stage of spring insertion, said clamping means comprising complemental plates located respectively on opposite sides of the fabric, and means for automatically operating said clamping means.

2. -In a machine of the character described, the combination of spring inserting means, a support for a pocketed fabric within a pocket of which a spring is to be inserted by said spring inserting means, means for effecting the clamping of the fabricon said support in the stage during spring insertion, said clamping means comprising complemental plates disposed respectively on opposite sides of the fabric, and means for automatically operating said clamping means simultaneously with the operation of the spring inserting means.

3. In a machine of the character described,

the combination of a hollow guide member arranged to receive a pocketed fabric, a portion of the discharge end of said member being stationary, said hollow guide member further including a pivotally mounted discharge portion adapted to be received within the mouth of a. pocket, means cooperating with said pivotally mounted discharge portion adapted to engage the fabric exteriorly of the pocket, and coil inserting means, said spring inserting means comprising means for receiving and compressing a spring and a plunger arranged to engage the spring in compressed statuts for feeding the spring through said hollow guide member;

4. In a machine of the character described,

the combination of a hollow guide member arranged to receive a pocketed fabric, a portion of the discharge end of said member being stationary, said hollow guide member further including a pivotally mounted discharge portion I normally biased to restrict the clearance of the discharge opening, a member cooperating with,

said pivotally mounted discharge portion for clamping therebetween a fold of the fabric, and spring inserting means, said spring inserting means comprising means for receiving and compressing a spring and a plunger arranged to engage the spring in compressed status for feeding the spring through said hollow guide member.

5. Ina machine of the character described, the combination of a hollow guide memberarranged to receive a pocketed fabric, the upper further including a pivotally mounted discharge portion normally biased to restrict the clearance of the discharge opening, a pair of members disposed respectively above and below the fabric when positioned on said hollow guide member, said lower member cooperating with said pivotally mounted discharge opening to clamp the fabric during the stage of spring insertion, and spring inserting means, said spring inserting means comprising means for receiving and compressing a spring and a plunger arranged to engage the spring in compressed status for feeding the spring through said hollow guide member, said upper and lower members serving to hold the spring within the pocket after its insertion by said spring inserting'means.

6. The combination of spring inserting means, a hollow support for a pocketed fabric within a pocket of which a spring is to be inserted by said spring inserting means, said.- hollow support including a movable portion arranged to engage the fabric within a pocket and a pair of presser members engaging opposing exterior sides of the fabric and cooperating with said hollow support to clamp the fabric during the stage of spring insertion, said presser members serving to restrain the spring after insertion within a pocket.

7. The combination of spring inserting means, a hollow support for a pocketed fabric within a pocket of which a springis to be inserted by said spring inserting means, said hollow support including a movable portion arranged to engage the fabric within a pocket and a pair of presser members engaging opposing exterior sides of the fabric and cooperating with said hollow support to clamp the fabric during the stage of spring insertion, said presser members being provided with serrations, said presser members serving to restrain the spring after insertion within a pocket.

8. The combination of spring inserting means,

a hollow support for a pocketed fabric within a pocket of which a spring is to be inserted byv members engaging opposing exterior sides of the, fabric and cooperating with said hollow support :to clamp the fabric during thestage of spring insertion, said presser members being opposingly cut-away to receive "said hollow support during the stage of spring insertion, said cut-away portions being providedwith serrations, said presser members serving to restrain the spring after 

